1

I. I i

COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA. ~

DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT.

BUREAU OF MINERAL RESOURCES

GEOLOGY AND GEOPHYSICS.

RECORDS.

1959/153

PLANT FOSSILS FROM THE CALLAWA FORW~TION, CANNING

BASIN, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

by

Mary E. White

The information contained in this report has been obtained by the Department of National Development, as part of the policy of the Common­wealth Government, to assist in the exploration and development of mineral resources. It may not be published in any form or used in a company prospectus without the permission in writing of the Director, Bureau of Mineral Resources, Geology and Geophysics.

" P4iN't FOSS:[L_S.fRQ1II THE O.bk~WA FORMATION 0 G.ANNJJ;iQ;

~.AS.IN, WEfJ.l.ERN AUST..RA.J..l;~l ( .. - .. R ormation contained In chis report has been obUlnoei

u'/ ,,,13 O~parcmenc f N I ",Oat onal De~elopment. as f,J~r, of

t"e pol,ry of the Co mmonwealth Government. to assist

In tho e~ploraUon and d I by

' eve OpmC!lt or mi'ler.' n.~OU'a8.

Mary E V1Th;te It may flot be publ ' h d I • y.... 0 I. C n on)' form 0,' US!!j in \ cl1,npJIlY pro.pectus or 6tuomonc ""ithout tho pel' " I~<ioll i " . 'rJ ..

RECORDS 1959/153. of thlil Director, Bureau or Minerai p,'sv ~o " : . and Ceophysics.

Mesozoic plant fossils were collected by Messrs. D.M. Traves and J , N. Casey in 1954 in the Callawa area of the Canninl$ Basin from four localities on the Yarrie four-mile sheet (Traves, Casey & Wells, 1957). Those from localities Y23 and Y34 were examined by Dr. R.O. Brunnschweiler (1949) who made tentative identifications and deduced a Late Triassic oT Jurassic age. A fuller investigation of the plants from those localities has now been made, in the course of review of all material from the Canning BaSin, and material from two additional localities in the area has also been examined.

The following plant fossils have been identified:-

1. At locality Y23. (14 miles NoW. of Callawa Homestead).

a. "NeQ!'Q.~..9QEt..eris minuta", new genus and species b. PachyptE}.,ris sp. c. Ginkgoi t~l?. diRi.:~.ata Brongn. d. CladophJ.ebj.~_australi~ Morr. e. Brach.yph1Ll1.um1!lam~llare Lind. & Hutt.

~!-At loc§ili tz...1..3J±. (10 miles N. W. of Callawa Homestead) 0

a. }?a.ill-9Phyllum ..E.~r~inum Schimp. b. Cycadean seeds. c. Brac~hYll~ foliage. (Voltzia.) d. R ufl'..Q!' eli <L.l!l0:;o, .r~t;.:;.o;;.;n,;;;;,i Wa lk.

2". At loc...a1i.U .D. (13t miles west of north of Yarrie Homestead) .

a. J?a.£..Q.Y.:B..teriE! sp. b. Clado~hlebis austtalj& Morr. (Sterile and fertile states).

c. Ja.r.ach,y:gh.Yl:,l'!!!., mami;Lll3.re L. & H. d. Cordaitean pith cast? e. "Neorhaco£te.ris minuta" f. Bi- locular seed, uncertain affinity. g. Small, fine frond, affinities unknown.

4. At locali trY _Y2,.1. (15 miles east of north of Yarrie Homestead) •

Indeterminate plant fragments. The following species listed by Dr. Brunnschw~iler

do not oocur in the specimens:-

"Dictyophyllum sp. (Hausmannia ?) Cladophlebis cf.; C. concinna (Prest .. )

Taeniopteris cfo T. wianamattae Walkom. Cone Scales, probably Araucari tes."

I\.

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The "Cladophlebis sp." of his list is referable to 9.1.a.d~h~ebi_~ .@~J!_raJ.:i.~ Morr. 9 the "Sphenopteris sp." to Rut'fordia.l!!~rtonJ. Walkom, and the "?Johnstonia cf. J. dentata Walkom" to P2,chyPt§.E.1.§. sp.

The plant assemblage in the specimens is atypically Jurassic one e However, the fern Rut'fordia mortoni Walkom is

_described from Lower Cretaceous b~s-at·-Pitrt;ovirle, Cape York Peninsula (192S). It is similar to the very common Jurassic fern Q~~n~0Ete~i~.h2menophYl~~d~ var. australi~ Seward, and some J-urassic specimens of Rut'fordia mortoni may have been referred to this species. Its-·pr~eIice in this assemblage suggests a bate...iL~assic age, or possibly early CretacELous.

The specimens from the Callawa area are housed in the Bureau of Mineral Resources Palaeontological Collection undernum~ers F21,lSl-F21,lS9.

Four impressions of terminal sections of delicate fern fronds are present in these specimens. Figure I, Plate I, (Magno X2) shows one of the larger examples, the others being less complete and of narrower fronds. This fern shows most striking similarity of form to the Palaeozoic genus ~J1ac~eris, and to Rhacopt~ris 9va~~ McCoy in particular, although the si~e is in no way comparable. (Figures of Rhaco~teris2yata showing the similarity are seen in plate 25 'OfITThe Carboniferous Flora of Peru" by W. J. Jongmans, 1954)"

It is proposed to neme this new plant species "~.£9.Q.te~.i..l?. JIlin-uta". There is no indication of the form of complete fronds and no fertile specimens are present. With such fragmentary evidence the plant can only be aSSigned doubtfully to the Filicales. It is not impossible that it might have s;:>me affinity with f!1Y]).9..c~?q.ioJ2.sis het.~rol?hxli.§. Fontaine ..

A small fragment of frond of E~~h.ypteris sp. is present in one specimen •

. S"p~~men~F2;L)S2. (Locality Y23) • •

An indistinct impression of part of a leaf of GinkgOi ~El.§. . di,.gf._!~ Brongn. is associated with small sterile fronds of ~1?~~leb5s australis Morr., a small, narrow stem of B~a~hY£~-lum m~~)are, and a fragment of Pachypteris sp. in this specimen. -

GL~Q}~es di1G~ata Brongn. is not a natural species and is used to include a large number of variously lobed leaves of the G-inkgolli~ type, very common in Jurassic strata and with practically world-wide distribution. (Figure 2, plate 1).

These specimens contain stem impressions referable to Pagio~p~~~~_~gr.i~~ Schimp. (Figure 3, Plate I). The surface of each stem impreSSion is deeply pitted in a regular pattern corresponding to the overlapping scale-like leaves of the original plant, seen here in cast form. Associated with these large stems are very narrow small stems referable to

, I'

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!ir~~JLl.1Y!!LI!!-Cl~i~J.a~ Lind. & Hutt., and fragments of Coniferous foliage of the "Voltzia" type. There are also small round secds which may be of Cycads.

The genera P~~Y.!l}, J?EchYph..Y,llum and Voltzia are not natural groups but are useful descriptive terms for types of stems and leaves of plants of Conifer affinity, and in this case it is probable that the large stems, small stems and leaf fragments are parts of the same plant species. All are widespread Jurassic types, ranging through Cretaceous to Tertiary and extending back to Permian in some cases.

§Qecimen Fgl,184q• (Locality Y34).

This specimen contains a terminal portion of a frond of the fern RUffordia .1!lortoni VValkom. (Figure 4, Plate I), associated with conifer stem and leaf fragments as seen in F21,183a.

Part of a frond of the fern Ruffordia mortoni Walkom occurs in this specimen, showing clear'iy·thewelf·Scpar'ated, multilobed pinnules of the species. (Figure 5, Plate I). There is also a terminal section of a very small frond of "N§Qrhacolrt~r...is Illin.!:!,t..?".

Ru:tfo£.<U.L1!lortoni Walkom was described by Walkom (1928) from Cape York Peninsula from a Cretaceous horizon. It is a species similar to a Vilealden species in Europe, and a Lower Cretaceous species in America. . It is a fern similar to the very common Jurassic fern Conio..:e.te£.,i§, h1l!!leno'ph"'y'llo~i!£§....Y~ ~~stra~ica Seward, especially in appearance of terminal sections of fronds.

Speci,!llen F21,18kc. (Locality Y34).

Figure 6, plate I, shows a small frond with six pinnules apparently with the same venation as "Neorh9.c .. o..pteris minuta" •

In this specimen fronds of ,Pc:is,hYJ)teris sp. occur (Figure 7, Plate 2) associated with fertile pinnulcs of Qladophl~is austYE_Iis Morro, small stems of BrachyPh~I~, and a fragment of stem with ring markings on the surface (Figure 8, Plate 2) which looks like a pith cast of the "Artisia" type and may be of Cordaitean affinity. There is also a very delicate frond approximately an inch long and 13" wide (Figure 9, Plate 2) of unknown affinity.

The fern fronds referred to P~qh,ypteris spo are similar to ~~? dentata Walkom, but are not referred to JohnstQ,Pia as Walkom's description of that genus emphasises a lamina "continuous, with the margin entire or lobed to a varying extent ••• " .f..~teris is closer to the !jlinnfeldi.a, type of frond with pinnulcs decurrent. No venation is visible in the present specimens except for a faint midrib on one pinnule. Early records of speCies of p~s~ter~ noted the absence of visible veins, but later Thinnfeldia type venation was shown to be present in well ~reserved speCimens of all spe9ies, but without a branch to the decurront portion of each lam~na.

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Species of ~cl.1Y:2.ter~, occur in Late Triassic and in Jurassic strata in South Africa and in Europe.

Figure 10, Plate 2, shows small stems of Bra~hyP~llum~~am~fl~ Lind. & Hutt. and a small bilocular seed. T ere arc also fertile pinnules of C.l.~q,9J2l11eb~.§. australis, Morr. and pinnulcs of "Reqr.h~9~0J?~eris mj}lut~tI •

.§J2.ecimel1 F2L181. (Locality '17).

F~gure II. Plate 2, shows sterilc fronds of Q1adQ.Q.Ql .. Q.b.1s aus.:t_r ... ~lis Morris which is a very common Jurassic plant. It ranges from Middle Triaasic, where it is rare, is common in Upper Triassic 9 and very common in Jurassic strata. It persists into Cretaceous strata in the styx River Series in Queonsland.

Specimen.f~1~18L~. (Locality Y7).

Figure 12, Plate 2, shows portion of a fertile frond of CladoEhl~bis aust~li§ Morr. with sori in two rows parallel to the midrib on each pinnule, near the margins.

Specime.n F21.1.88. (Locality Y7). sstjj -- -,

The remaining specimens from locality Y7 contain elements of the same flora as seen in the described specimens.

Specim~n F211$~. (Locality Y27).

The plant fragments in these specimens are indet erminate.

Sele~ted References , -Arbor, EoA.N., 1917 - The earlier Mesozoic floras of New

Z~aland. 1i,-Z.tAe.oL.§.~v. Pa l~eol1~._ .. B..ill. 6,1-72.

Berry, E.W, , 1911 - The Lower Cretaceous deposits of Maryland. Mar llaIfd ,.Rc .. QI-,-S.L1rv .•. l?ubl. Baltimore.

Brunnschweiler, R.O. p 1956 - ~pendix ' A. Plant foss·ils of the Cal1awa formation. In "Geology of the Sout4 West Canning Basin, W. A. \I B~r_.Millg,~.,~.9.§ .. our. A-aot:,. Rep. 29, 49-50.

du Toit, A.L., 1927 - The fossil ~l~ra of tho Upper Karroo Beds. A~~l1,~~tr.M_up~.22, 2, 289-420.

Fe1stmantel, 0., 1879 - Jurassic (Lias) flora of the Fajrnahal group in the Rajlahal Hills. Geol.Surv. J.nd,_Ea)peollt. I-m. I, pt.29 53-162'.----

Fontaine. W. M., 1889 - The Potomac or Yomger Meso zoio flora. 1h.§..,.Reol.,., Surv.!.. Mor~. X:V. Washington.

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Jones, O.A. and de Jersey, N.J., 1944 - The flora of the Ipswich coal measures. Morphology and floral succession. ~niv.£L'ld.P~.(Geol.). III, 3, 1-88.

JongmanB, W. J., 1954 - The Carboniferous flora of Peru .. Bull.Br.Mus. (Nat.Hi~~.!). Geol.II, 5.

Oldham, T. and Morris, J., 1863 - Fossil flora of the Rajmahal Series in the Rajmahal Hills. Geol.Surv.lnd. Palaeont.lnd. I. ser.2, pt. I;=- l-52;-~~-'~

Seward, A. C., 1910 - "Fossil Plant s" 110 1917 - "Fossil Plants" III. 1919 - IrFossil Plants" IV.

Camb. Uni v. Pr e..J!§. ..

Traves, D.M., Casey, J.N. 9 and Wells, A.T., 1957 - Yarrie, Western Australia. Bur.Min.Reso~. Aust. 4 mile geQl. sere Sht.F51-1.

Walkom, A. B., 1915 - Mesozoic floras of Queensland. Pt.l. Qld.geol.Surv. Publ.252.

1917a - Mesozoic floras of Queensland. Pt.l, ctd. Qld.geo1.Surv. Publ·257.

1917b - Mesozoic floras of Queensland. Pt. I , concld. Q1d.geol.Surv.Publ. 259.

1919 - Mesozoic floras of Queensland. Pts.3 & 4. The floras of the Burrum and styx River Series. ~1~.geol.Surv.Publ. 263.

1921 - Mesozoic ~loras o~ N.S.W. Pt.1. Mem.geol.Surv.N.~W., Pa1aeont.12.

1925a - Notes on some Tasmanian Mesozoic plants. Pt.1. Pap.Proc.Roy,Soc.Tas. 73-89.

1925b - Notes on some Tasmanian Mesozoic plants. Pt.2. Pap.Proc.Roy.Soc.Tas. 63-74 ..

1928 - Fossil plants from P1utovi1lc, Cape York Peninsula. Proc.Linn.Soc.N.S.W. 53, pt.2.

1928 - Fossil plants from the Esk district, Queensland. Proc.Linn.Soc.NoS .. W. 53, Pt.4.

P];liTE

Fi~~S~e F21181. n::[,eor h~.£..op tSLi-LIA~~ I' Terminal portion of frond. Magnif. X2.

Fig~9._~.F21183. Pqgigphyllum poregrinum Seh.

I.

GAur ~L ~. F 21184a • R 'dffg r <:1:h§. mortoni Walk. Terminal portion of~rond, with fragments of Conifer foliage. Magnif. X2.

~~e 2. F21184e. Small frond. Same vonation as "Ncorhneop:LEITJf3, minuta If.

l\iT8:gllJ:I': X 2 •

~ . .

fi~F~. F2ll85 . Pachypteris sp. X 2.

Figure 9. F2ll85: Fino"-Frond. X 3.

E.MTE

¥~~gqr.q....1.1' F2ll87. S-ccrile1'ronds of Cladophlebis australis Morr -. . . • ...,..=-'''"''''"'"-~- . ., -. - ~ ." • ..=--" . ,

Figur~. F2ll85. Pith Cast (?) of i'Artisia" type. X 2.

Fi~rQ ~~g. F2ll87a. Fertile pinnulcs of ClCLC?:g..12h.kqjL§ .J.u~~l;i.~s Morr. X 2.